Ho's egalitarian regime free from foreign influence won hearts and minds of people - Diem's never did.

Before 1959 HCM told supporters in South not to attack Diem

Hanoi wanted to be seen as abiding my Geneva Accords - divided whether consolidation in North take priority over liberation of South - gave Diem opportunity to arrest+execute S.V Communists - numbers dropped 10,000 1955 to 2,000 1959